Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku

Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku

is a special attack from the Street Fighter series used by Akuma, Ryu and Ken, and is a fictional technique of Shotokan Karate, a real martial art that has had certain liberties taken in the spirit of entertainment. The practitioner jumps into the air and spins around, often hitting the opponent multiple times. While not as well-known as the Shoryuken or Hadouken, it is nevertheless an easily recognizable move of Street Fighter canon. It is also referred to colloquially as the "Helicopter Kick", the "Hurricane Kick", or the "Tornado Kick".

Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku's Performance and Purpose

In the Street Fighter universe, the Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku is performed by focusing one's ki beneath himself or herself into a small tornado, which lifts the practitioner off the ground and spins him or her around in a circle while propelling them towards their opponent. Usually the user will outstretch one leg while using this in order to hit the enemy with it multiple times, hence the name "Tornado Whirlwind Foot" (the word "foot" used here can also mean "leg").

In the video games, it is performed by pressing down, down-back, and back and then any kick button: it is often listed as ↓↙←K in guides and manuals. Since this directional sequence is used in many other fighting games, it is sometimes known as the "hurricane kick motion" or something similar. The strength of the kick used determines strength and distance (among other things); a full-power Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku will usually travel over half the screen. Different variants of the move were first seen in Street Fighter II: Champion Edition.

The power of this move is offset by its relative ease to counter. A Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku can easily be jumped over, hit by the opponent (from above or otherwise), and even ducked under; however, it can also be used to dodge certain projectiles. The user also experiences a brief moment of vulnerability upon landing.

Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku Variations

- The standard move that Ryu and Ken use.

- First introduced in Street Fighter II Turbo, it was initially a mere hurricane kick in mid-air, but was changed in later games to follow the arc of one's jump somewhat.

- A move originated by Ryu. The practitioner creates a larger tornado of ki and hovers in place, sucking the opponent in for a powerful multi-hitting attack. This is usually a super special move, though in Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact, it was reduced to an EX attack.

- A move originated by Ken. He starts out with a kicking combo, including his Nata Otoshi and Kama Barai Geri, before ending with a rising Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku. This is a super special move, and a very powerful one at that. It was first seen in Street Fighter III, but the inclusion of the move as a level-3 super in Street Fighter Alpha 3 might suggest that he had discovered the move before the events of Street Fighter III.

- A move originated by Goutetsu. This is the original move, with a more violent tornado that has enough spinning force behind it to cut through an opponent, killing them. Akuma increased this move's power by embracing the Satsui no Hadou.

- A move discovered by Akuma by the time of Street Fighter III. He uses the full power of the Tatsumaki Senpuu principle, causing an effect similar to a rising Shinkuu Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku, ending with a flying kick knocking the enemy away. This move can also be performed in mid-air, where it is called the .

Users in the Street Fighter series

(Kuuchuu) Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku - Ryu's version is straightforward and knocks the opponent down in one hit. This move earns him a victory in a fight with Guy, although Guy learns the move afterwards.

Shinkuu Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku - Ryu is the only user of this move, and learned it after the events of the first Street Fighter game. It creates a vacuum effect whereby the opponent is drawn into the attack, and strikes the opponent multiple times.

(Kuuchuu) Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku - Ken, opting for speed, instead prefers to use a multi-hitting variant of this move but leaves his opponent standing. This is more effective for dizzying, as each consecutive hit contributes to the stun meter. The EX version in Street Fighter III allows juggling.

Shippu Jinrai Kyaku - A powerful move, if not blatant and showy, Ken's latest incorporation into his official moveset is a very reliable move if it connects.

(Kuuchuu) Tatsumaki Zankuukyaku - A powerful move, and the only variation that allows juggling within the Street Fighter games except in Street Fighter III where the EX Kuuchuu version of Ken's does the same.

-

Messatsu Gou Rasen/Senpuu - Akuma is the only user of this life-threatening technique. Akuma travels into the air with his opponent, lifting both a considerable distance from the ground, and striking multiple times.

Other users

In Mega Man X8, Zero can execute this move after defeating Dark Mantis and having the K-Knuckle equipped. While it's called "Senpuukyaku", the purple flames that surround Zero identify it as a version of the Tatsumaki Zankuukyaku.

Kenji from the Capcom fighting game Red Earth can perform an attack called the "Rasen-Kyaku"; a carbon copy of the "Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku".

In the Homestar Runner cartoon series, the eponymous character does the move in a Strong Bad email titled "dangeresque 3", which actually featured the first installment; Homestar yells "The pipes are broken!" before doing so. A game on the same website, named Stinkoman 20X6, has 1-Up, the futuristic version of Homestar, doing this attack as well.

Cyber Hero from Capcom's Gotcha Force is able to perform a forward-bearing variation of the Shinkuu Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku, though he calls it the "Hero Spin".

Guy and Cody from the Final Fight series also have the ability to use a "Tatsumaki Rasen" as a special enemy-clearing attack now featured in most beat-em-ups. Later, Guy called it the "Bushin Senpuukyaku" in the Street Fighter Alpha series, whereas Cody stopped using it by the time of that game, instead fighting in his prison attire.

Sakura uses a variation of the move called the . It is similar to the Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku except for the fact that Sakura jumps and descends in an arc when she performs the move.

Dan uses a move called the which bears little resemblance to the Senpuukyaku aside from its name. It is essentially a series of up to three flying kicks (depending on what strength attack button is used). It a parody of the "Hien Shippu Kyaku" technique of Kyokugenryu Karate used by Ryo Sakazaki and Robert Garcia in the Art of Fighting series.

Sean uses a technique called the "Tornado". Instead of spinning like the rest of the users of this move, he basically kicks the enemy with a solid force up to 4 times (somewhat like Dan, which could account for his resentment of being mistaken for Dan).

Yuri Sakazaki has a variation of this move called , which acts and curves in a similar (albeit higher) arc like Sakura's Shunpuu Kyaku.